Robert of Bellême, 3rd Earl of Shrewsbury

Robert "the Devil" of Bellême, 3rd Earl of Shrewsbury (1057-1130) was Earl of Shrewsbury from 1098 to 1102, succeeding Hugh of Montgomery, 2nd Earl of Shrewsbury.

Biography
Robert of Bellême was born in 1056, the son of Roger de Montgomerie, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury. In 1073, during William the Conqueror's conquest of the County of Maine in France, Robert was knighted at the siege of Fresnai castle. In 1077, he took part in the rebellion of Robert Curthose against Duke William, and William responded by garrisoning all of Robert's castles. Upon the Conqueror's death, Robert expelled all of the garrisons. In 1088, however, during another rebellion by Curthose against William, Robert detached himself from the rebel cause, and his family rebelled against Curthose after Robert and the future King Henry I of England were both imprisoned by Bishop Odo of Bayeux for allegedly conspiring against Curthose. Curthose secured the castle of Ballon, but he suffered heavy losses during his campaign against Robert's other castles, and he decided to quit the campaign. By 1090, Robert was back in Curthose's good graces, and he became a principal councillor to him. In 1090, he put down a revolt in Rouen, and he inherited the Earldom of Shrewsbury from his father in 1098.

In 1096, Robert regained the favor of Duke William (now King William) after Curthose embarked on the First Crusade. In 1100, after the death of William, Henry rushed to claim the throne of England, resulting in the failure of Curthose's ambitions to become King, as well as the end of the Montgomerys' power at court. In 1102, King Henry captured Robert's English castles after he refused to appear before a court for his unlicensed building of castles. In 1106, he was one of Curthose's commanders at the Battle of Tinchebray, and he fled the field to avoid capture. Robert was seized and imprisoned after petitioning King Henry (on behalf of France) to release Curthose in 1112, and he was imprisoned until his death in 1130.